buying clubs

[Cottons]

I was thinking about getting some new wedges and a driver when im out in fliorida this june. is ther a customs person soecifically looking out for holidaymmakers bring clubs back to the uk and more fundamentally how do i get the clubs back without snapping them ?

mark

[blott]

The major thing to remember is that your duty free allowance is £145 each and you can't share one item between two allowances.

If they're going into the hold, then I'd advise wrapping them in bubble wrap (easily obtained in large rolls from Wal-Mart and much cheaper than in the UK) and then some cardboard taped securely around. Don't forget to label each item securely too.

[E. Cosgrove]

If you tell them you are transporting them overseas they will package them properly for shipping.

My husband has bought golf clubs on a couple of occasions.
The first time we went through the red channel and declared them, the customs officer just obviously couldn't be bothered with the paperwork!![msneek] He added our allowances together (something you are not supposed to do as Blott rightly says), asked us what else we had bought and then said we were within our limit and sent us on our way[msnoo]
I think it was 7am and he was probably just ready to go home[msnwink]

The second time my husband bought just a driver and didn't declare it[msnsad] We were stopped by the customs and asked if he had bought a set of clubs, when we said it was just a driver we were sent on our way with no further investigation[msnsmile]

The third time he left them behind at the villa[msnsmile]

He has often transported clubs back and forth in his own golf bag and we have never been stopped and asked if they are new at all[msnwink]

[MarkJan]

I have never been asked about my clubs when bringing them back. I presume from your post that you are not taking your other clubs with you. I would suggest taking a golf travel bag on holiday with you or buy one in Florida, wrap loads of clothes around the clubs for the trip back.

[RIS]

Or treat yourself to a new golf bag in Florida to bring them back in. I always put towels around the club heads to help protect them.

[JoRo]

We have brought clubs back without any problems.
Joyce

[Cottons]

Thanks folks, done a bit more research, one of my friends is going to lend me his golf travel case, i'll take my own bag so i've got something to put my clubs in for the way back. Virgin are offering free transport of golf bags plus two pieces of luggage up to 23kg each at the moment, it seems silly not to take advantage of this.

other than edwin watts are there any other golf superstores that offer great value - specifically titleist drivers and wedges I think.

regards mark

[MarkJan]

I would suggest Golfsmith also.

[edlea]

Cottons - We (five of us) are all big into golf.
We regularly get three sets of clubs in one big golf travel bag - we call it the "body bag". As long as its weight is below the max.allowance limit it is accepted as standard. A tip here, we don't take our regular golf bags, just pencil bags, available online as cheap as £4.99 - they will hold a couple of woods and seven or eight irons and a putter. Don't bother taking balls, waterproofs etc..Just wrap an old towel (or bubble wrap if you can be bothered) round the heads and they should be ok.
We've bought clubs over there and brought them back with (so far) no bother. But be careful what you buy and where from. Check out prices before you go on the internet. A couple of examples : my teenage lad who's now beginning to play really well wanted some Mizuno irons. On Edwin Watts' site, the ones he wanted were $899 ; I bought them online in ENGLAND for £279 delivered. On the other hand, I bought some Titleist irons from a guy in Salt Lake City, had them shipped to our place in Florida all in for $390. Bargain. But that was eBay.
So it cuts both ways - just don't think everything's a bargain in the States 'cos thre's two dollars to the £1.
Balls are often given away free when you pay green fees (yes, really) and we always buy new golf shoes at the outlets (last year we got TWO pairs of Adidas for $45 - buy one at £29.99, second one half-price). Green fees are also VERY cheap in the summer months 'cos it's there low-season and there's often course work (scarification / slitting etc.) going on.
Have fun and enjoy !! [8D]

[allyjack]

I know somwone in Ireland bought new clubs and customs looked through all of them to see if they had been used or not !!!! They had not declared them either. However they had been used so they were OK.
Alison